Having started this degree during the pandemic in 2020, my university experience was largely affected by the lockdowns and online learning taking place at the time. I feel the degree has given a broad overview of early childhood, and the professional practice of working with children and their families. It has given me the skills to continue developing my practice and also a strong foundation to look for a wider range of jobs within the field, or for further study.
WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO DO THIS PARTICULAR ROUTE, AND WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO PURSUE STUDYING EARLY YEARS?
My interest in becoming a primary school teacher is one I have always been aware of – making registers for my friends, and even planning my own lessons, was play I regularly enjoyed as a child.
During secondary school I took on a volunteering role at my local gymnastics club, coaching young children and helping them to develop their skills. I loved this role within the club and found my passion for teaching children here. Watching them develop and progress felt so fulfilling, I knew I wanted to carry that on into a career.
Leaving college early in March 2020 due to the pandemic meant I had plenty of time to reflect and plan for my future steps.
I found I have always valued children and loved spending time both teaching and learning from them, so when this course was highlighted to me in the university clearing process, I jumped at the opportunity to begin my career working with young children. The psychology component of this degree has also been an ongoing area of interest to me. Having completed an A-level in psychology, I found childhood development fascinating and wondered how it could be applied to help better encourage and facilitate learning for children in my own practice.
Two years into the degree, I chose to complete a placement year as I wanted to gain more experience of working in a nursery setting, which I could then lean on when completing my dissertation and final modules.
WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND CHALLENGING AND ALSO HELPFUL IN OVERCOMING THESE CHALLENGES?
By undertaking a degree pathway into early years, I found I gained a strong understanding of the theories and current research in the field, but I felt there was less focus on curriculum implementation and the administration work behind nursery practice.
Going into my placement, this meant I had a lot to catch up with and learn from my fellow practitioners. Designing engaging activities backed up by current research, and the planning and documenting process alongside them, felt quite new to me. So I am very grateful to my placement for their guidance. Leaning on them helped me to develop my confidence in this area, and by the end of my placement I felt more capable of completing this side of practice.
Similarly, the placement opportunity highlighted the importance of tailoring activities to children’s individual needs. In actual practice, keeping all children engaged with areas of their individual interests, working within the ratios and juggling the dynamic and ever-changing events of the nursery day, is something that no amount of theory can teach. This proved a challenge for me as it felt overwhelming at first, but I found getting stuck in and listening to my colleagues was the best way to learn. This also helped to boost my confidence in the setting as I was better able to manage the theory and practice elements of the field.
Finally, I would say taking on the degree in 2020 during the pandemic greatly changed my university experience. My first year consisted purely of remote learning, and meant I was unable to complete the placement element of that year. This proved really challenging so I am so grateful for my lecturers who were incredibly supportive at the time. They set up extra Zoom meetings, recorded lectures and took on student feedback to help support us during that time. I also found using the placement office and facilities at the university helpful as I was able to take on the placement year to help fill in the gap in my practice.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO OTHER STUDENTS/APPRENTICES CURRENTLY STUDYING OR WORKING IN THE SECTOR?
I would love to encourage other potential early years practitioners to consistently reflect on their own practice, and work towards improving it. This advice stems from my experience reviewing the data for my dissertation, where I stumbled upon an unexpected new theme regarding the language I use with children. I found myself critiquing my own practice, despite studying the area for three years at that point and feeling well trained.
What we say and when we say it has a large impact on children and their development, so it is crucial we as practitioners are aware and mindful of it. I couldn’t believe how many times I repeated ‘good job’ or ‘that’s such a good idea’. I never realised how often I used the same phrases over and over and have since tried to be more specific with my feedback to children and highlight the effort they had committed to the task.
Some prompts to begin reflecting on your own practice could include: identifying challenges of the day, asking yourself what you have learnt from them, or could have done differently; and setting a goal for your future practice which encompasses that advice. It may sound simple, but this mindful, reflective practice is a great way to gain a deeper understanding of your own practice and improve your support of children’s development.
Relating more to completing the degree, managing your time well is crucial, however that looks for you. I found that goal-setting with my dissertation supervisor really helped me to stay on track. By splitting these bigger goals into smaller ones for myself, it meant I was able to stay on top of my workload and actually enjoy the research I was completing. I think this is important for any type of study, but specifically for early years; there is so much joy to be found in the process of learning, which can sometimes be overshadowed by looming deadlines. This can be managed by handling your time well, which I can say from experience allows you to get so much more out of the degree.
WHAT ARE YOUR INTENDED NEXT STEPS AFTER THIS?
I have high aspirations for my career with young children, but if I am honest, I am not sure what my next steps will look like. After graduation, I would like to return to working as a nursery practitioner and continue to gain experience working with children and developing my practice by taking on additional roles within the nursery.
Following this, educational psychology is an area I have a great interest in, so I am looking into completing a Master’s in this subject. Alternatively, as I mentioned previously, teaching has always been a passion of mine, so I am also considering completing my PGCE and becoming a primary school teacher.
Right now, I feel I am exploring my options as I am honestly unsure of what path my career should take. I want to gain experience in as much of the industry as possible, so I am flexible with my next steps!
Whatever I end up doing, the degree pathway has formed the foundation for my future practice and has given me so many opportunities to expand my knowledge and practice.
which figures in the sector do you find most inspiring and why?
I have so much respect for all of those in this sector, as they are the most empathetic, patient and hardworking people I have met.
In particular, those who push for outdoor and risky play, as well as musical and experiential learning, as they go above and beyond to deliver exceptional learning opportunities for children.
This can be challenging as other curriculum demands, safety and daily challenges can be obstacles to such activities, making it easier to repeat familiar ones instead.
By working through those obstacles, these practitioners inspire creative and enabling practice which children can benefit more from.
I am also so inspired by the lecturers on my course as they have worked so hard to compile their knowledge and experiences, and use them to help develop their students’ practice.
They have really inspired and helped me to pursue this career, so I am incredibly grateful to them.
